


Little Zenigata

by peggywrites



Category: Lupin III
Genre: Angst, Families of Choice, Family Drama, Family Dynamics, Hurt/Comfort, Other, Unconventional Families, at least in terms of the gang, k i nd of, lupin tries his best but isnt great at emotional support
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-29
Updated: 2020-06-29
Packaged: 2021-03-04 05:47:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,311
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24988534
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/peggywrites/pseuds/peggywrites
Summary: “Will you stay until my dad gets home?” Toshiko asked, and the question made Lupin tilt his head curiously.“Why would I do that?” He teased, giving the girl a smile.“So he can catch you.”
Comments: 7
Kudos: 52





	Little Zenigata

When Lupin first learns Zenigata has a daughter, it’s very early on in their game of cat and mouse. He had been doing some snooping around one of the many ICPO stations in disguise and was about to take his leave with the information and files he had gathered when he heard Zenigata’s voice from the other room. It was the same, booming, happy kind of voice he used when he was about to capture the thief and his newly formed gang of hooligans, but there was no hint of anger to be found. 

General curiosity wins the thief over and he peaks his disguised face into Zenigata’s makeshift office. The inspector was chatting up two other officers who have rather impatient expressions on their faces, as if they would rather be anywhere else. Lupin shuffles into the room, hands behind his back in a polite stance as he finally catches onto what Zenigata is saying.

“It’s amazing.” He states, holding up what appears to be his wallet. Very in view and very easy for Lupin to snatch if he wanted to. But he’s not pointing at money, he’s pointing at a little girl in large overalls. “We thought she was learning to read quickly, but she had actually memorized the whole book. I guess I read it to her so many times she just knew when to turn the page.” The he burst out into laughter, throwing his head back with a great big smile.

Lupin scrunched up his nose, causing the latex one to shift as well. With a polite tone and different voice, he spoke up. “Pardon me, sir. I’m new here. Who are you talking about?” He asked with a respectful manner.

“Oh!” Zenigata looked up at him, finally registering him within the room. The other two officers gave a sigh and shuffled away. Obviously, they had already heard the spiel Zenigata was about to unravel. The inspector sat up so he could bring his wallet closer to Lupin’s disguised face. “This is my daughter, Toshiko.” He said with a smile, and Lupin blinked in surprise. “The other day, she showed me that she could read her bed time story all by herself.” Zenigata pressed his lips together before giggling. “But halfway through she admitted that she couldn’t actually read it, she had actually memorized the whole thing!”

Any other officer would say “smart kid!” or “you must be very impressed/proud” or something along those lines, but Lupin wasn’t an officer. His gray eyes blinked with shock as he looked back up at Zenigata.

“You’re a father?” He asked, and Zenigata all but nodded happily.

“Yes.” The inspector smiled, tilting the wallet this way and that as he gushed about his daughter. “Toshiko just turned five a few weeks ago. She won’t start school for a while, but we can already tell she’s going to be top of her classes.” He says this with pride, squeezing his eyes shut with glee. Lupin glanced down and finally notices the ring on Zenigata’s finger. He would’ve done a spit take if he had any water. 

“Wow. I didn’t know you were actually a _pops_ , Pops.” Lupin smiled softly, placing his hands on the desk so he could lean in to get a better look at this little girl. She definitely looked like Zenigata. She had the same almond skin and dark brown hair as he did, and Lupin could already tell her lashes were going to be as long as her father's. She was a cute kid, he had to admit, Zenigata was pretty lucky.

Zenigata had also been pretty quiet after Lupin spoke, and the thief reversed what he said in his mind to see if something upset him. He didn’t get the chance as the telltale click of a handcuff being snapped over his wrist drew him out of his thoughts.

“LUPIN!” All the kindness and warmth left Zenigata’s voice and was replaced with annoyance and shock. Right “Pops” that was his nickname for the inspector. No underling would dare call him that. Zenigata pulled the handcuffs up, dragging Lupin along with them until their noses were almost touching. “You’re under arrest!”

“Can’t get anything past you, Pops!” Lupin giggled, reaching up with free hand to yank the latex mask off his face, revealing his curled, cheeky grin. The motion shocked Zenigata enough for Lupin to shift his hand out of the cuff and bolt from the room. Escaping the building was easy enough with some quick maneuvers and knocking over some office cabinets.

When he returned to the safe house, Jigen was right where he left him; smoking on the couch in a position that could only be comfortable to the gunman.

“How’d it go, boss?” Was Jigen’s only response to Lupin coming in.

“Oh, great, great! Went just as planned!” Lupin dug into his pockets as he shed the rest of his disguise, tossing important documents on the countertop before rushing over to the couch. “But you are _NOT_ gonna believe what I found out!” He placed his hands on the edge of the couching, leaning over with a giant smile.

Jigen regarded him by lifting his hat just barely above his eye so he could give Lupin a curious look. The thief only smiled at him, so he gave a reluctant sigh. “What _did_ you find out, boss?” 

“So glad you asked!” Lupin giggled. “Zenigata has a kid! He’s a dad to the cutest little girl ever!” 

There was a silent pause from his partner before he shrugged. “So?” 

“So? Don’t you think that’s adorable? He was going on and on about her too.” 

“I try not to think about whether or not people have kids.” 

The statement got Lupin to look over Jigen, who had tilted his hat back over his eyes. He had only been running with Jigen for a while now, and that was about the most emotionally open the gunman had gotten with him so far. Jigen was a brick wall, but Lupin could spot a few cracks here and there. Lupin reached over to pat at Jigen’s shoe.

“You know what this means, don’t you?” Lupin asked with a light air about him.

“The ‘no killing Zenigata’ rule just got a new tier?” 

“Bingo!” 

“I don’t know why you like that guy so much.”

“Because, unlike everyone else in the ICPO, he doesn’t want us dead! So we shouldn’t want him dead.” Lupin explains with a gesture of his hand.

“Whatever.” Is all Jigen says, and Lupin will have to take that as a ‘yes’ for now.

The next time he hears about Toshiko, he had bugged one of Zenigata’s cars. The man had mumbled something about ‘missing a damn piano recital’ as he chased Lupin and a small yellow fiat down a road outside of Tokyo. He never mentioned Toshiko by name, but Pops didn’t look like the kind of guy to go to piano shows for fun. 

The next time he thinks of Zenigata’s daughter was after he finally saw Jigen without his hat and the man stopped calling him ‘boss’ in favor of his actual name. It had been a few years and their capers had spread throughout Europe by this point. His grandfather would’ve expected nothing less. More flamboyant jobs meant longer trips away from Japan. They were planning on taking some very expensive trinkets from a museum in Paris and they had been in the country for about three weeks, with Zenigata hot on their trail (calling card being a helpful tip). The little girl in the photo doesn’t cross Lupin’s mind until he spots Zenigata in his police car on a stakeout, looking for them no doubt. He was hunched over the wheel of his car, speaking into the car phone with a warm smile. 

It gets Lupin to sit up a bit on the roof, bringing the binoculars up to his eyes so he could spy on the inspector better. He had learned to read lips, a trait he picked up from some time ago, but it doesn’t take a genius in the skill to know when someone mouthed ‘Goodnight, sweetheart. I love you too.’ When the inspector placed the phone down, he sighed, looking very tired and gloomy, and he fiddled with the sleeves of his jacket.

Lupin hated to say it, but Zenigata’s deflated state is what allowed them to get away with precious jewels that evening. 

After spending another month in Europe, Lupin had the gang move back to Japan to one of their smaller safe houses. After some digging around in a boxy computer, he dragged Goemon and Jigen to the suburbs of Tokyo. He had told them it was for a job, but without disguises or their usual fan fair, Jigen picked up on it real quick.

“There’s nothing special out here.” The gunman said, dropping his jaw to move his cigarette to the other side of his mouth.

“Jigen, dear. Haven’t you ever heard not to judge things by how they look?” Lupin said with an exaggerated sigh. 

“What are we even doing here?”

“Sight seeing.” Lupin stated as he counted house numbers.

“ _Sight seeing._ ” Jigen grumbled in response. “This place kinda ... looks like the Brox, but ya know, with money.”

“There is a shrine not too far from here.” Goemon pointed out, making Lupin turn with a grin. “Lupin. If that is our next hit, I would advice against it.”

“What? Scared of dead people being mad we stole their old stuff?” Lupin giggled, lacing his fingers behind his head with a cheeky grin.

“I am not fond of invoking the wrath of someone’s ancestors.” Goemon corrected, and Jigen gave an audible shutter next to them. 

The shrine was nearby, and Lupin was glad Goemon didn’t know who it belonged to. They passed the structure a few blocks later and once they rounded the corner, Lupin stopped them in front of a house. The house has one floor with a sliding screen door at the front. It looked old, but recently renovated to fit the needs of a modern family. Lupin took no time in pushing the gate open and walking into the front lawn.

“Oi! Lupin!” Jigen whispered a hiss, grabbing his fiend’s shoulder but begrudgingly followed behind. “We can't just walk in. Do you know who lives here?”

“I do, and so do you -“ he points at Jigen. “and you!” he points at Goemon, almost touching the samurai’s nose with his finger. He watched the gears in Jigen’s head turn before he straightened up.

“Oh no. You didn’t.” 

Lupin only laughed, stepping further into the yard.

“Lupin!” Jigen pressed his hat further over his eyes, as if it would make him less recognizable to anyone that lived here. “If he finds us here, he’ll-“

“Relax, Jigen.” Lupin stated smoothly. “Pops is at the station, I checked their punch in cards this morning.” He reassured. “I just want to check the place out a little. Get some insight to what our dear inspector is like when he’s not with us.”

“This is too personal.” Jigen mumbled, staying close to Lupin. “We’re gonna find something we don’t like.”

Ignoring his friend’s warnings, Lupin rolled his eyes and began rounding the house. Always check the perimeter before you go inside. As they turned the first corner, they were greeted with a pleasant looking backyard. It had a small stone path, flowers, bushes, a porch swing, and a small zen garden that had a few castle making plastic molds buried inside of it. Lupin opened his mouth to say something, but Goemon’s hand grabbed his shoulder and made him turn.

There, sitting on the porch step, dressed in tan overalls and a pink shirt, with almond skin and dark brown hair, was a little girl with a book on her lap. She was staring up at the three with wide, long lashed eyes. 

Lupin paused, but he’d be lying if he said this put a dash in his plans. Meeting Toshiko had been the reason he wanted to come in the first place.

The thief stood up straight like a tin soldier, giving a salute to the side of his head. “Bounjour, madam!” He said with a smile.

The little girl closed her book quietly before sitting up straight. Very carefully she said “ _Je -- je ne parle ... pas français._ ” The words were broken and she had trouble saying them, but she managed to say the sentence. 

It made Lupin giggle, no doubt a phrase taught to her by her father. He loosened his stance, placing his hands within his pockets as he took a few steps towards her, Jigen and Goemon close behind.

“Sorry.” He spoke in Japanese this time. “Old habits die hard.” He explained. “I’m Lupin, that’s Jigen, and this is Goemon. We’re friends of your dad!” Lupin pointed to each of his friends, ignoring Jigen’s groan as he just gave this child, **_Zenigata’s_** child, their names. “You’re Toshiko, right?”

The child paused before very cautiously nodding.

“Nice to finally meet you! Your dad talks about you all the time.” Lupin told her. It was a little white lie, but it made her smile.

“Are you here by yourself?” Goemon stepped out from behind Lupin’s back, looking over the house with a curious glance.

“No, Mama’s inside taking a nap.” Toshiko answered, but in a normal tone of voice to suggest her mother was a heavy sleeper, and couldn’t hear things that happened outside. Lupin was about to say more when she tilted her head. “Are you _really_ friends of my dad?”

Lupin smiled nervously, reaching up to scratch the back of his head. “Of course, he’s like a regular old pops to us! Always looking out for us.” 

“You look like a drawing he gave me.” Toshiko told him. When Lupin gave her a curious look, she held up her finger to tell him to wait, then she stood up and opened the screen door and went inside her house without bothering to take off her shoes. 

“This is bad, we should go.” Jigen hissed as soon as the girl was out of ear shot.

“Don’t be a party pooper, Jigen.” Lupin hissed back, pushing his friend’s hand from his shoulder. 

Toshiko returned quickly, sliding the door closed again as she stepped off the porch to approach Lupin and the others. She had something in her hands, and Lupin quickly squatted down to be at her eye level.

“He sent me this when he was away in Italy. It was with my postcard.” She explained, holding the card out to Lupin. When he took it and turned it over, he saw that it was a photocopy of one of his calling cards. Printed on it was “keep up the good work!” in goofy letters, along with his signature Lupin bean. It was grinning up at him happily. 

Lupin smiled at the idea that Zenigata sent things like this to his daughter. That explained why he would always stop in those silly souvenir shops whenever they went.

“You’re _not_ friends of my dad.” Toshiko stated it this time, her small voice determined. “My dad’s trying to catch you. You’re thieves.” 

Lupin heard Jigen shift uncomfortably behind him, and he gave Toshiko a smile. “Looks like you’re a little detective yourself.” He handed the card back to her, and the compliment seemed to make her beam. “No way anyone can get anything past the Zenigatas.” 

“Thank you. But I want to be a writer when I get older.” Toshiko told him, tucking the card into the pocket of her overalls. She then looked to Goemon behind him and then to Jigen. Stepping around the thief, she moved in front of Jigen with a curious, yet in-awe look.

“Are you _really_ a cowboy?” She asked, and Jigen took a step back.

“I - Uh - what?” The gunman looked this way and that as if checking to see if it was really him she was talking to.

“My dad says you’re a cowboy. Like in Western movies.” She stated again. Lupin couldn’t help but giggle at her almost demanding tone of voice. She was definitely Pops’ daughter alright. 

“Oh, hehe, well, sure. Then I’m a cowboy.” Jigen slipped his hands into his pockets, slacking his shoulders in defeat.

“Then how come your cowboy hat looks different?” Toshiko asked, tilting her head and squinting her eyes.

“Am I being interrogated?” Jigen’s hands came up to his chest as he looked at Lupin and Goemon, but there was no harshness in his voice. “I feel like I’m being interrogated.” As Lupin stood up, Jigen assumed the position of getting down to Toshiko’s level. He smiled at her, maybe softly, if you could call it that. And Lupin almost forgot that Jigen had a little sister somewhere in the world.

“You see. I’m from New York. That’s in America.” Jigen explained. “Have you seen movies that take place in New York?” He asked her and the little girl gave a nod. “Well, cowboys in New York look different than cowboys in Texas or Oklahoma. So we wear different hats.”

“You’re American?”

“Yes.”

“Why do you look Japanese?”

Lupin snorted, but Jigen answered anyway. 

“My family is Japanese.”

“Oh.” There was a pause before Toshiko spoke again. “Have you ever killed anyone?”

 _“O - KAY!”_ Jigen shot straight up, clapping his hands out in front of him and giving a cough. He shot daggers at Goemon and Lupin from where they were giggling. “You - you shouldn’t have to worry about stuff like that.” 

“Oh. Okay.” Toshiko nodded, looking down before going over to Lupin and tugging at his pants. “Lupin?”

“Yes, little Zenigata?” Lupin smiled, returning to his position by her side. 

“Will you stay until my dad gets home?” Toshiko asked, and the question made Lupin tilt his head curiously. 

“Why would I do that?” He teased, giving the girl a smile.

“So he can catch you.” She says this matter-of-factly, as if it’s obvious. She looked him dead in the eye when she said it, but there was sadness behind those eyes.

Lupin’s smile faltered. She wanted him to stay so he could be arrested. She wanted him to stay so Zenigata could be home more. She wanted her dad to stop traveling the world to chase some thief and instead be home with them. With her.

Lupin smiled, placing a hand on the top of Toshiko head. “Sorry, little Zeni. I have places to be. But, how about you give this to your dad when you see him. It’ll help him know where I’m going to be soon.” Lupin dug into his pocket and handed her a new calling card. Unfortunately, his next job would be on the other side of the country. Far, far away from this little girl.

“Okay.” Toshiko nodded, but she didn’t read the card. Lupin guessed she figured reading other people’s mail would be illegal. And that was something an inspector’s daughter shouldn’t do. “Bye then.”

“Bye then.” Lupin gave her another salute before exiting the backyard with his two friends. He closed the gate behind them and led them back down the sidewalk. They walked in relative silence before Jigen spoke up.

“Told you we’d find something we don’t like.”

The next time Lupin sees Zenigata in a souvenir shop, he’s not wearing his wedding ring. 

Years pass and he doesn’t spy the inspector making any late night phone calls anymore. Time flies and souvenir shops are all but forgotten by both inspector and by Lupin. 

The game of cat and mouse continues. Zenigata grows a few gray hair and wrinkles appear on his face. Lupin ages, but he doesn’t show it as well as his do-good counterpart. He doesn’t have gray hair or back pain or silly things like that. He’s as spry as ever. Heists become more and more elaborate. Stealing the Mona Lisa in Italy, hijacking a war submarine from Russia, finding an underground city under Alcatraz, stealing a beautiful princess from Cagliostro, and many many more. Time doesn’t seem to slow down for either of them. But Lupin knows they both love this. They both love the thrill of the chase. 

It mean to say, but Lupin doesn’t think about little Toshiko Zenigata for years. When Zenigata takes care of Ami for a while, the thought of her hits him like a truck. When the gang has to leave France, they find themselves back in the (relative) safety of Japan in an old safe house. Jigen can tell Lupin’s thinking of something that bothers him. The thief always goes quiet when he does, but thankfully his friend doesn’t press when Lupin decides to shove the matter far far away into the back of him mind. He even puts it in a little box and seals it shut.

Lupin places their next heist in Tokyo. What better way to tell Japan that they’re back then in their best city? 

An collection of old samurai masks had been recently restored and were currently being displaced in a temporary exhibit at a small museum. Goemon was, once again, very against stealing such precious items, but was quickly convinced once Lupin told the samurai he could pick out whichever one he wanted to keep, sell or return. 

The office building next to the museum they were hitting was for a newspaper, so Lupin takes no time in sending over dozens upon dozens of calling cards through their fax machines and into their computers. The chaos of the situation took the office the whole day to calm down, as one very grumpy reporter wrote about in the next day’s newspaper. 

The heist went about as exciting as how you would expect a heist by Lupin iii to go. His calling card had drawn the police, Zenigata and Yata included, to surround the museum with as much security as they could muster. All of which Lupin, Jigen, and Goemon all slipped past effortlessly. Alarms blared as the three found themselves on the roof of the museum, smiling down at the frustrated police officers, scrambling reporters, and excited citizens of Japan. The three split the masks among them. In case one of them got caught or lost theirs in the fray, they would still have at least four when they got back to the hide out (there were six in total, each thief was carrying two in small bags slung around their shoulders). 

Jigen went right, Goemon went left, and Lupin sprinted forward to the front of the museum. He leapt off the roof; gasps from below were followed by Pops’ voice in the megaphone he carried. With a flick of his wrist, Lupin shot out the grappling wire of his watch, latching onto a street sign and swinging over the crowd. He could hear Zenigata yelling at him to stop, but he had no intention of doing so. With his momentum in full swing (pun intended), Lupin pulled his Walter from his holster and pointed it forward. With one squeeze, he sent a bullet into the newspaper office building, creating a small hole in one of its floor to ceiling windows. Lupin then tucked his feet together, pulled back, and kicked with all his might as he crashed through the window feet first. The bullet had softened and cracked the window just enough so that Lupin wouldn’t be hurt as he practically flew into the building. 

He fumbled forward, not quite sticking the landing on his feet and instead has to catch himself on his hands to keep himself from going face first into a pile of broken glass. With a smile he stood up straight, dusting off his blue jacket and fixing his tie. He checked the contents of his satchel, still in one piece, and it was only then did he notice he wasn’t alone in the room.

Which was odd, because no one was supposed to be in this building this late at night. Lupin had checked. It was why it was his escape route. 

But there, sitting at a desk, was a woman. Probably no later than a year or two out of high school. She was wearing slacks, a white button up shirt, and a tan cardigan. She had turned from her desk, absolutely covered with paper and work, and was now staring at him with wide eyes. 

Lupin stood up straight and blinked right back at her. “Uh, hehehe, bonjour, madam!” He said, twiddling his fingers in a small wave.

Then something weird happened. The women’s eyes narrowed and she looked at him with more hatred than Lupin could wrap his head around. He watched her eyes flick from him to the phone on the desk next to hers. In a split second, she had lunged for it. 

And in a split second Lupin was over there, tackling her to the floor.

It wasn’t very gentleman like. He would need to apologize. But he was on a very tight schedule. He have a girl phoning Zenigata to tell him exactly where he was going ruin his plans. 

The two tumbled, the phone falling next to them not a second later as pens from a desk cup spilled on the floor, no doubt knocked over by her hand as she was taken to the floor. 

“Sorry!” Lupin stated, trying to press her arms to the ugly carpeted floor. “I have to leave and I can’t have you telling people where I’m going!” He tried to explain.

“Get off of me!!” The woman below him screamed, and the familiarity in it made Lupin blink with surprise. She grabbed a pencil and tried to bring it towards his face, but he quickly knocked it away. 

“Lady! I mean it! I don’t want to hurt you!” Lupin told her, pinning her hands to the sides of her face. What was with this lady? Her knee came in contact with his stomach and Lupin struggled to stay above her as she squirmed.

“Let me go!” She demanded and Lupin finally saw it. The anger in her eyes, the tone of voice, it was all familiar. It was all Zenigata. What stuck him was her eyes. Long lashes blinked furiously from below him.

“... Toshiko?” Lupin breathed softly, and suddenly her fist collided with his nose. He reel back, clutching the area with both his hands as he shouted. “Ouch!! Jeez, kid! What the hell?!”

Toshiko gave him no response, instead she pushed him off of her and made another grab at the phone. She dialed a number and held the phone up to her ears, only to hear the dial go dead silent. When she looked up, Lupin was holding the plug to the phone in one hand while still clutching his nose with the other. 

“What are you doing here?” Toshiko demanded, standing up and placing an office chair between her and Lupin, as if it were a means of protection. 

“I sent my calling card here yesterday.” Lupin winced, pulling his hand away after tapping his nose with the pad of his finger. Nothing was broken, that was good. “I thought no one would be here this late, so it’s my escape route.” He paused, looking over her desk at the many writings that cluttered it. “You did become a writer.”

“Shut up.” She told him.

“Why weren’t you by the museum with all those other reporters?” He asked with genuine curiosity.

“Do you think I want anything to do with you after what you’ve done?” Toshiko’s hateful gaze returned to him, and Lupin blinked with surprise.

Him? What did _he_ do? His mind raced to wonder if he had ever stolen anything from Zenigata that might’ve been a present to Toshiko, or if he had stolen from Toshiko herself. He couldn’t remember. He couldn’t think of anything. 

**_“LUPIN!!”_ **A loud booming voice flooded into the room as a the door to the office room was kicked open. Lupin turned to see Zenigata burst in with that determined smile on his face. 

Before the thief could react, Zenigata’s lasso handcuffs was thrown towards him and latched around his feet, making Lupin trip and fall flat on his face by Toshiko’s feet. He mumbled a small _ouch_ before Zenigata marched over to him, picking up up the lapels of his jacket with one hand and cuffing his hands with the other.

“Got you, Lupin!” He said with glee. “You have the right to remain silent!”

“You got here fast, Pops.” Lupin admitted, ignoring whatever right he had. He was never going to be silent, Zenigata should know this. “Faster than I expected.”

“And I’ll be just as fast getting you down to the station. Thank you, miss!” Zenigata pulled Lupin up again, though the thief couldn’t stand on his own. “You’ve just aided in the arrest of a dangerous -“ 

Zenigata stopped talking, and suddenly Lupin’s face collided with the floor once more.

“OW! _WHY!?”_ Lupin groaned, pushing himself onto his side to look at the father and daughter. “What is it with you two and my face?!”

But they didn’t answer him. Toshiko’s arms were crossed over her chest and Zenigata was staring at her with wide, almost unbelieving eyes. 

“Toshiko.” He almost whispered the name, hardly audible with the sirens and chaos still outside.

“Hi, dad.” Was Toshiko’s only response. She looked down at Lupin, scrunching her nose up with disgust. “What are you waiting for? You got him. Go.”

“But ...” Zenigata trailed off, looking between Lupin and his daughter. It made the thief give him a confused glance. “I just ... I haven’t seen you in years.”

“That’s not my fault.” Toshiko stated, and suddenly her voice was like ice. It made both him and Lupin wince. She paused, then sighed. “Alright. A bit of that is my fault. But at least I can admit I don’t want to talk to you.”

“What?” Zenigata sputtered, taking a cautious step forward. “What are you talking about?”

“Jeez, dad, can we not do this? Can we not do this here? In front of _him?”_ She pointed a finger at Lupin, and it immediately made the thief feel self conscious, a feat not easily achieved. He pushed himself off his side and sat up as well as he could with his hands and feet cuffed. “I mean, you burst in and you didn’t even recognize me.”

“I’m sorry.” Zenigata said softly. “It’s been so long. Too long. I'm -"

“I’m really not in the mood for your excuses.” Toshiko hissed through her teeth. “Do you realize what you’ve done?” The statement made Zenigata wince. “I mean, do you actually realize what you’ve done, or have you just lied to yourself so much you’ve developed selective memory?!”

Watching Toshiko spit acid, and watching the way it made Zenigata curl in on himself, well, Lupin couldn’t just sit there and let it happen.

“Hey!” He piped up, drawing both their attention. “You can’t talk to Pops like that!” He told her, lifting his throbbing nose into the air.

 _“Pops?!”_ Toshiko laughed, but she didn’t look like she was in a good mood. She spun back to Zenigata with a scowl. “Are you kidding me?! _That’s_ what he calls you?” 

Zenigata opened his mouth to say something, but she didn’t let him talk. Instead, she turned back to Lupin.

“You better think of a new nickname for him, Lupin.” Toshiko placed her hands on her hips. “Because he’s the farthest thing from a _Pops_ you’ll ever see.”

That made Lupin look back at Zenigata, who was looking very ashamed as he pressed his neck into his shoulders. 

“You can’t be serious.” Lupin huffed, growing more irritated at the state Toshiko words were putting Zenigata in. To think this was the same little girl who wore overalls and looked at Jigen with awe. “Pops cares about us. He’s one of the best men I know.”

“Cares about _you_ , maybe.” Toshiko admitted with a shake of her head. “But he stopped caring about me a long time ago.”

“Toshiko, you know that’s not true.” Zenigata insisted, but he didn’t take anymore steps towards her. “I do care about you. I love you, it’s just Lupin -“

“You are _so_ caught up with this stupid charade.” Toshiko pressed her lips together, as if she was trying to lock in her emotions. She looked over at Lupin, who was still carrying a very confused expression on his face. “You don’t get it, do you?” She asked him, and Lupin, very stupidly, shook his head no.

“Oh my gosh. Oh my gosh!” Toshiko threw her hands up in the air before pointed at Lupin. “That’s rich considering it’s all your fault! Actually, no! That’s giving you too much credit, it’s his fault too!” She then rounded on her heel to glare at her father. “All he cared about was catching you. It was Lupin this, Lupin that. Bed time stories became tales of your stupid heists. As if I wanted to know about that! When you started globe trotting it was all downhill from there.” Toshiko reached up to furiously scrub under her eyes, Lupin almost didn’t notice she was crying. “After you visited our house, Dad took your calling card and went straight after you.” Toshiko explained. “That was it for Mom. She was mad because he didn’t even stop to ask if I was okay.”

“Lupin and his friends wouldn’t have hurt you.” Zenigata defended.

“You don’t know that!”

“Yes, I do! They’re criminals, but they wouldn’t hurt a kid. Definitely not my kid!”

“Pops is right, we wouldn't have -“ Lupin spoke up, guilt rising in his throat.

“SHUT UP, LUPIN!” Toshiko spun towards him, and Lupin flinched back, almost afraid that she would hit him. “After you got divorced, it was like you disappeared. You stopped the postcards, you stoped the calls. I would’ve been fine if you hadn’t forgotten my birthday.“ she shoved both hands over her eyes. 

Lupin’s stomach turned and he felt terribly sick. Had that been his fault? Had he done that? Did he busy Zenigata so badly with heists and chases that he made him forget his daughter’s birthday? Lupin felt like shrinking into his suit. He suddenly felt like he was listening in to a very, very, very private conversation. He definitely wasn't supposed to hear this.

“I wanted nothing to do with you, and you still tried to make things up. Why? What made you think I wanted you back in my life?” Toshiko sighed, dragging her hand across her face in a motion that mimicked Zenigata’s whenever he was tired. 

“I ... I don’t know.” Zenigata admitted softly, ashamed, he looked down at his shoes and suddenly his imposing figure looked too small. “Toshiko, I -“

“Don’t.” She stopped him, voice wavering. “Please, please don’t.” Toshiko looked over at Lupin, but there was no hatred in her eyes. She just looked ... sad. She looked over at him like she was accepting whatever terrible situation life had thrown her in. “Just ... go.” She looked at her father one more time before bending over to set the cup back on her desk, taking the pencils from off the floor and setting them back inside.

Zenigata’s hands were back on Lupin’s shoulders, and he was hoisted up onto his feet. Lupin looked back over his shoulder as the girl leaned over her desk with her eyes skewed shut before he was forced to turn the corner with Zenigata. The inspector said nothing as they stepped into the elevator, Lupin couldn’t imagine what was going on inside his head. Should he ... say something? Toshiko had made a point; if Zenigata had never been assigned to Lupin’s case, he would’ve been home more, he would’ve gotten to see Toshiko. He could’ve been a dad.

Maybe Lupin should’ve given Zenigata more time for a break once in a while, for him to be there for his kid, but he couldn’t give him that time now.

“Pops?” Lupin leaned forward, trying to catch the man’s gaze, but Zenigata looked to be avoiding it at all costs. 

The elevator door dinged to signal it was at the bottom floor, and Zenigata grabbed Lupin’s wrists to tug him along. But Lupin didn’t stumble, in fact, his feet weren’t restrained anymore at all. 

They hadn’t gotten an inch from the door before Zenigata stopped and sighed. He turned to the thief and Lupin’s heart felt like it shattered. Before him was a broken father. A man who had made so many promises only to leave them behind, lost and forgotten. 

“ _Pops_.” He tried again, and Zenigata finally looked up at him, his eyes watering.

“Don’t.” Zenigata told him quietly. “It’s my fault. I was so — I’m too obsessed with catching you. I never had time to be her dad. That’s my own fault. Not yours.” He explained. "I know you want to fix things, Lupin, but this is one thing you -- _we_ can't fix. No matter how much I want to fix it."

Lupin looked down at his wrists and gave a sigh. He almost hated doing this, but he pulled his hands apart, revealing the cuffs had been unlocked a long time ago. He reached forward and placed them in Zenigata’s outstretched hands. He bit his lip, not sure what he could say apart from an apology. So he reached forward, giving the inspector a quick hug before backing away, not wanting another slug to his nose.

But Zenigata simply gave the other a smile, one that faded very quickly. He pointed in the direction of the nearest hallway, not the main entrance/exit he was moving towards earlier. 

“Just go.”

As go Lupin did, but not before looking back to Zenigata who had one hand on the office wall and the over buried against his face.

**Author's Note:**

> I would love the Lupin series to make Zenigata's daughter an active character in the franchise, but alas, fics will have to hold me over for now. Zeni's kid is mentioned a a total of ONCE as a throwaway line and I latched onto that like my life depended on it.
> 
> also jeez i cannot think of good names for my fics, i have to get better at that


End file.
